Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
CD117 protein patterns linked to dog mast cell tumor severity
By Gil da Costa, Rui M et al.·Published in BMC veterinary research·2007·University of Porto·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: CD117 immunoexpression in canine mast cell tumours: correlations with pathological variables and proliferation markers.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A dog with a mast cell tumor, a common type of skin cancer, was studied to understand how certain markers in the tumor relate to its behavior and prognosis. Researchers found that abnormal patterns of a protein called CD117 in the tumor were linked to more aggressive forms of cancer and higher cell growth rates. This means that if a tumor shows these abnormal CD117 patterns, it may indicate a worse outcome after surgery. Understanding these markers can help veterinarians better predict how the tumor might behave and guide treatment decisions.
People also search for: dog mast cell tumor prognosis · CD117 in dog tumors · canine skin cancer treatment
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Cutaneous mast cell tumours are one of the most common neoplasms in dogs and show a highly variable biologic behaviour. Several prognosis tools have been proposed for canine mast cell tumours, including histological grading and cell proliferation markers. CD117 is a receptor tyrosine kinase thought to play a key role in human and canine mast cell neoplasms. Normal (membrane-associated) and aberrant (cytoplasmic, focal or diffuse) CD117 immunoexpression patterns have been identified in canine mast cell tumours. Cytoplasmic CD117 expression has been found to correlate with higher histological grade and with a worsened post-surgical prognosis. This study addresses the role of CD117 in canine mast cell tumours by studying the correlations between CD117 immunoexpression patterns, two proliferation markers (Ki67 and AgNORs) histological grade, and several other pathological variables. RESULTS: Highly significant (p < 0,001) correlations were found between CD117 immunostaining patterns and histological grade, cell proliferation markers (Ki67, AgNORs) and tumoral necrosis. Highly significant (p < 0,001) correlations were also established between the two cellular proliferation markers and histological grade, tumour necrosis and epidermal ulceration. A significant correlation (p = 0.035) was observed between CD117 expression patterns and epidermal ulceration. No differences were observed between focal and diffuse cytoplasmic CD117 staining patterns concerning any of the variables studied. CONCLUSION: These findings highlight the key role of CD117 in the biopathology of canine MCTs and confirm the relationship between aberrant CD117 expression and increased cell proliferation and higher histological grade. Further studies are needed to unravel the cellular mechanisms underlying focal and diffuse cytoplasmic CD117 staining patterns, and their respective biopathologic relevance.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17711582/